It was a long process for the Bucs to find their new offensive coordinator this offseason. In fact, 10 different candidates interviewed for the position. Though as the old saying goes, save the best for last, and Tampa Bay thinks it found a good one in Dave Canales.
So far it’s been nothing but rave reviews for the former Seattle quarterbacks coach. From the top down, Canales’ new-age offense in the stylings of Sean McVay has the entire Bucs organization full of buzz. The energy shift has been easy to see and is backed up by droves of players when asked about the new offensive system they’ll be running.
The positive approach that Canales has brought has been a steady presence since he interviewed for the job. Before training camp began, Bucs general manager Jason Licht spoke about how Canales energy has been permeating through the building.
“It hasn’t changed since Todd Bowles brought him in here for an interview and I had the opportunity to sit with him for a couple hours,” Licht said. “It hasn’t changed – it’s been the same every day. He is very steady, in terms of the energy and the focus. It’s fun to talk with him because he’s looking for solutions at all times: ‘If this doesn’t work, we’re going to do this, but trust me, I feel good that this is going to work. We’re going to put these players in these positions, etc.’ He’s a very positive person and I like a lot of positivity around the building and he definitely adds to that.”
Bucs head coach Todd Bowles and OC Dave Canales – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
Bucs head coach Todd Bowles has a lot riding on his hire of Canales. With a bad season he could find himself unemployed. He’s counting on Canales’ new offensive scheme to play complementary football by running the ball effectively and keeping the defense fresh for the fourth quarter, which was something former offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich failed to do last season. Throughout training camp Bowles liked what he saw from the first-year coordinator.
“I think Dave has been doing an outstanding job,” Bowles said. “He’s an outstanding teacher – he was like that in the interview, he’s like that every day. He’s very upbeat, he’s very detail oriented. He understands where they’re at, he understands how to get guys in position. He learned them all in the spring. As he installs and gets a feel for who can do what, I think it’s coming together pretty well. I like where he’s at.”
Bucs RBs Should Thrive In Dave Canales’ System
There is nowhere to go but up for Tampa Bay’s ground game, which averaged a pitiful 75 yards per game and ranked dead last a year ago. One of the reasons why Todd Bowles selected Dave Canales as the new offensive coordinator was his 13-year background in Seattle where the Seahawks are known for running the ball efficiently year in and year out.
Canales will make sure the Bucs run the ball this season – and run it well. The backs, the offensive line and the tight ends don’t really have a choice.
Bucs OC Dave Canales, RBs Ronnie Brown and Sean Tucker and QB Kyle Trask – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
“The guys are really excited about the full complement of what we’re doing,” Canales said on Thursday. “Especially because it all starts with the run game, so the big guys up front are really, really fired up about it.”
So are the Bucs’ running backs, who will get better at contact balance, which is an essential skill necessary to generate more yards after contact. Rachaad White averaged only 3.7 yards per carry during his rookie season, but that was good enough to lead the team.
Canales would like to see that number increase by a whole yard or more this season – to 4.7 yards per carry or better. Sticking with the running game long enough to have success will be essential.
“I think it’s just volume,” Canales said. “What happens is: contact balance, contact adaption – if I run this way 10 times and the tackler keeps coming from inside out to the left, I have a plan for how to make him miss, how to break that tackle. Whereas, if you only run it twice, you don’t get the same feel. Just by sheer volume, our running backs in Seattle learned how to make those extra yards on different run types. We’re going to run it, so they’ll get really good at that. We’ll grow from there.”
The track record of running backs having success in this mid-zone system goes all the way back to Denver under Mike Shanahan with Terrell Davis decades ago. This run scheme can thrive with a feature back or it can also work with a by-committee approach. It puts the onus on the running back to utilize their patience and vision to know when to cut back, and which hole to hit, and has yielded positive results in every derivative of the system. It’s something that White is fired up about.
“The new scheme, honestly, is just amazing,” White said. “We’re running things out of different formations. There’s a lot of eye candy on stuff. There’s a lot of motion and things like that. I just really like it. We’ve got good run plays, good run schemes, I think it’s just a great offense. The track record of the offense shows and you’ve seen the running backs that have thrived in it.”
Bucs RB Chase Edmonds and OC Dave Canales – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
White is hoping as he steps into a larger role that he can become the next one of these backs that come from a version of the Shanahan offense to put up big numbers contributing in the run and pass game. New Bucs running back Chase Edmonds sought out the opportunity to join the Bucs this offseason and has loved what he’s seen from Canales’ ability to let mistakes happen and reset after them.
“I love Dave,” Edmonds said. “Dave is very positive. I’m big on positivity, just good energy. I love Dave, and love what he brings to the team. He has always a big emphasis on resetting yourself after a bad play, whatever it is. Everyone has their own different reset focus, and just to be able to reset yourself as an offense, because the NFL is all about ebbs and flows, and being able to hone back into an assignment and continue to get better.”
Continuous improvement is one of the themes this year for the Bucs, and Canales is not exempt from that. One of the biggest things that has impressed White about the first-year offensive coordinator is his eagerness to continue to learn and improve.
“What I like the most about Coach Canales is he’s always eager to learn,” White said. “He always likes to hear everyone’s opinions and what they think. We all put our brains together, the coaches and even the players in the same pot and collectively towards the same goal.”
Dave Canales’ New System Is Offensive Line-Friendly
Bucs OC Dave Canales with Tom Moore and Harold Goodwin – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
The new system Dave Canales is implementing on offense won’t just help the Bucs quarterbacks and skill players, but the offensive line as well. For everything Tom Brady brought to the team the last three years mobility wasn’t one of them. That lack of mobility combined with the predictability and inability to be creative or effective in the running game unfortunately left Tampa Bay’s offensive line hung out to dry on most plays. Last season opposing defenses knew what was coming and would just pin their ears back on every play as the Bucs often abandoned the run too early.
This scheme calls for more mid-zone and wide-zone runs that will allow the offensive line to utilize their athleticism and move horizontally which will help keep defenses on their toes. Making the transition to left tackle Tristan Wirfs loves what Canales brings and what the new system allows them to do as an offensive line.
“I love Coach Dave,” Wirfs said. “He’s an incredible person. He brings so much energy all the time. This offense has been really nice for us as an offense and an offensive line. Not sitting there and dropping back and letting the defensive line pin their ears back. We’re able to throw a lot of different stuff at them and kind of keep them on their toes.”
Bucs center Ryan Jensen echoes Wirfs and is excited about the creativity the offense can display.
Bucs RG Cody Mauch – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
“I love it,” Jensen said. “The creativity in this offense has been great and a different energy than we have had in the last couple of years when it comes to the run game, passing game, and stuff like that. What we are going to be able to do with a little bit of a more mobile quarterback will be awesome as well.”
For the Bucs new starting right tackle Luke Goedeke, the new offensive system has been eye-opening. The ability to run different plays out of the same look while using their athleticism moving horizontally along the line instead of being asked to drop back every play has been a huge difference.
“It’s a night-and-day difference,” Goedeke said. “Having that in your offense and in your arsenal, it’s a game-changer. It tires out the defensive line so much.at the end of the day we can almost tee off on them and they have to try and run and protect the front side and the back side if we run a boot leg. It’s really a night-and-day difference from last year.”
